13 Great Fast Food Items that Would Be Even Better at a Real Restaurant

My first thought when I learned that Taco Bell was releasing a taco made inside Doritos shells was monosyllabic: “Want.”

And it was quite wonderful. Make whatever snide comment you want about Taco Bell’s meat — or any large American fast food chain’s for that matter — but there’s a time and place (especially 2 AM) where it’s just exquisite. You know you’ve felt those feelings.

But still. Imagine a Dorito shell taco with freshly-cut marinated steak, salsa verde, shredded muenster cheese, onions, cilantro, and rich avocado. The kind of taco that Guy Fieri would take a gigantic bite out of and pause for several seconds as he struggle to find the right adjectives before fist-bumping the chef. Taco Bell can’t accomplish that on its massive scale and get it to you for less than two bucks. Nobody can — that’d be a failing business model.

So if you have sophisticated tastes in unsophisticated foods, you’re left wondering just what it’d be like to sample some of the cholesteralically creative fast food items at a really great restaurant or bar. What bold flavors are getting left on the table?